(Image credit: Copyright Alexander Sliwa)īlack-footed cats represent but one species in a highly diverse feline family, many of which are difficult to observe in the wild and are not well-understood. Livestock grazing reduces the habitats of black-footed cats, which hunt birds, rodents and even insects that inhabit grassland ecosystems. But those success rates make them the deadliest little cat on Earth," he said. "If you're a gazelle or a wildebeest, a black-footed cat isn't at all deadly. With a 60 percent success rate, black-footed cats are about three times as successful as lions, which average a successful kill about 20 to 25 percent of the time, Hunter said. In one night, a black-footed cat kills between 10 and 14 rodents or small birds, averaging a kill about every 50 minutes, according to Hunter. And then they nab it," Hunter told Live Science.
"They wait for up to 2 hours, absolutely immobile, just silently waiting at the burrow for a rodent to appear.
Another of their methods takes them on a slower course through their habitat, with the cats weaving quietly and carefully to sneak up on potential prey.įinally, they use a sit-and-wait approach near rodents' burrows, a technique called still hunting, Hunter said. One method is known as "fast hunting," in which the cats bound quickly and "almost randomly" through the tall grass, flushing out small prey such as birds or rodents, Hunter said. (Image credit: Copyright Alexander Sliwa)īlack-footed cats use three very different techniques to nab their prey. Black-footed cats are found only in three countries: Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.
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